Potato digger and loader.



J. FRITZ. POTATO DIGGER AND LOADER. APPLICATION FILED JUNE 3, 1910.

1,008,534. Patented Nov. 14, 1911 3 SHEETS-"SHEET l y W n 7f M MM J. FRITZ. POTATO DIGGER AND LOADBB. 1

- APPLICATION FILED JUNE 3, 19 10. 1,()()8,534 Patented Nov. 14, 1911.

[nven tor A :torneys J. FRITZ. POTATO DIGGER AND LOADER.

APPLICATION FILED JUNE 3. 1910.

1,008,534, Patented Nov. 14,1911.

3 SHEETS-'SHEET a.

Attorneys JULIUS FRITZ, 0F NEWARK, SOUTH DAKOTA.

POTATO BIGGER AND LOADER;

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Nov. 14, 1911.

Application filed June 3, 1 510. Serial No. 584,787.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, JULIUS Fnrrz, a citizen of the United States, residing at New- .irk, in the county of Marshall and State of South Dakota, have invented a new and useful Potato Digger and Loader, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to an improvement in potato diggers'and-lopders, the primary object of the invention being the provision of a digger having a conveyer leading away therefrom, and having one end thereof resiliently supported, combined with a spaced receiving wagon whereby the material dug,

is conveyed to the wagon.

In the accompanyin r draw1ngs;-Figure Lie 8. top plan view of t 1e digger and loader.

'Fig. '2 is a side elevation of the digger.

. Fig. 3 is a. longitudinal sectional View of the digger. F ig. 4 is a side elevation of the digger viewing the same from the side opposite to that as illustrated in Fig. 2. Fig. 5 is a diagrammatic view of beltings employed upon the wagon.

.Referring to the drawings, the numeral 1 designates the digger proper, having the wheeled truck 2, the draft tongue 3. and the- U-shaped rear axle 4, provided with traction wheels 5. A trunk 6 is supported upon the axle 4, and the beams 7 are attached at their rear ends to the forward ends of the trunk 6, while to the forward ends of the beams 7 which are slotted as at 10, are socured together by means of the cross bar 8. A- clevis 9 is located upon the cross bar 8 and above the rear end of the draft tongue 3. A yoke 11 is mounted upon the forward portion of the frame 1, and serves as a guide for the forward end portion of the roller 32 is journaled in the bearings 33,

which are adjustably mounted in the guides 34, provided upon the sides of the trunk 6. The roller 32 1s provided with two sets of teeth 35. A roller 36 is journaled to the share 27 below the rear ends thereof, and is spaced a short distance from the same.

An endless conveyor 3-7 is arranged to move about the rollers 21, 32-, 3G and over lhe roller 29 supported by the arms 28. The upper run of the said conveyor passes over the guide strip .26 and is 111: contact with the same. The end less conveyor 37 is made up of a series of r vds linked together 4 at their ends and having their intermediate portions spaced from em 11 other, the space between the intermediate portions of aid rods being sufficient to p :rinit potatoes and soil to pass throu h, but the said interme' diate portions of t 1e rod 6 are invsueh close relation as to prevent he foliage of the plants from passing dowi between the same. By this means a diggii g. and harvesting. device may be used to dig and convey the iotatoes fromthe grounl where they may. he delivered free of diit and: vines to a wagon which is ad'a )ted o be at-the side of and operate in parallel ith thedigger and harvester.

The sprocket wheel .40 is fixed to a shaft 43-, which in turn is jouinaleil in the bearings 44 adjustably mounted in guides 45 located at the sides if the trunk (3. Sprocket wheels 47 are mounted upon the intermediate portion of the shaft 43.

A conveyor 44 is leeat 2d withi'n'the convever 37 and passes around the sprocket.

wheel 47 upon the shaft 43 and the roller 36 is journaled atthe rear p irtion of the share 27. The eonveyer 44 ii similar in structure to the conveyor 37 -with the exception that the intermediate pot-(ions of the bars are closer together and here is not space between the bars and the said conveyor to permit the potatoes to f Ill. through.

A yoke 48 is pivoted upon. the platform 30 for horizontal swingin g movement and a hopper 4.9 is pivoted botw en the ends of the yoke 48 for vertical swnging movement.

The hopper 4-9 is provide 1 with an inclined slatted bottom section 50 and the lower end of a conveyer trunk M is :ixed to-the hopper 0 49 and is in synelinalrela tion to the bottom section 50 thereof. A bridle member 52 is connected at one end with the upper portion of the trunk 6 and atils :ther end with the outer portion of the trunk 51 and is adapted 5 to hold the said trunk 51 at a desired inelination. A shaft 53 is 'jou'rnaled for rota- -lion at the lower end of the trunk til-and a shaft 54 is journaled for rotation at the upper outer end thereof. An endless open 110.

eonveyer is arranged to move longitndi nally along the trunk 5t and around the said shafts b3'and M. A llexible shaft. so is. connected at one end with one eml of the shaft 53 and at its tltlltl,tlltl is connected with a pinion 57 which is journaled for rotation at the side of the trunk t) and meshes with a pinion 5h tixed tollnend of the shaft 43.

A frame 58' is adapted to he applied to the upper edges of a wagon body at! and a eonveyer t'runk 60 is' located upon the said frame. shaft til is journaled for rotation at one end of the trunk (34) and is provided with a belt wheel 02. Belt pulleys (iii and (it. are attached to one of the wagon wheels and a belt ()6 passes around the belt. wheel 64 and belt pulley ti! and is adapted to rotate the shaft (it. .\n arm (37 is pivotally attached to the side of the wagon body 59 and carries at its free end belt pulleys (3S and (39. The free. end of the arm 67 is under the tension of coiled spring 70 one end of which is attached to the said arm :nnLthe other end is attached to the step 71 of the wagon body or other part of the body. A bcltpulley 72 is fixed to one end of the shaft- .it journaled at. the upper end of the conveyor trunk 51. In case it should be so desired a. belt 73 is passed around the belt' wheel 63 thence under the belt pulleys 6S and (39 and over the pulley 72 and thus ntay serve asineans for rotating the shaft 54. Inasmuch as the arm (,7 is

under spring tension the upper outer portion of the trunk 51 is resiliently held in position between. two arms and upon-a roller which will now be" described.

A roller 74 is journaled at the outer side of the trunk (50 and the upper outer 'end of the trunk '51 rests upon the said roller. l p; wardly and outwardly disposed arms 75 are attached to the outer side. of the trunk (30 and receive the upper outer portion' f the trunk St between them.

The ton ue 76 of the wa on is connected in is at-its forward end by means of a spacing bar 77 Will] the forward end of the'tongue 3 of the digger.

The operation of the digger and loader is as follows. l'resuming that the digger and loader are connected together in the manner as illustrated in Fig.1 at the drawings and the parts of the digger are .in the position shown in Fig. 3% As the digger and loader are drawn in a forward direction the. share. .27 will pass under the tuhers'aml lift the same together with top soil and the vines upon the upper run of the couveyer 3'7. "lhe polatoes and soil will fall through the. links of 'the said eonveyer while the vines will rest. nponlhe upper run and will be car -ried up and passed over beyond the end of the trunk to. 'lhe tubers will tllopu-lown between the links of theconveyer 37 upon the links of the conveyor 44 and the soil will pass through the. spaces between the links H and deposit upon the ground. The potatoes are carried up by the upper run ot'the eonveyer 4t and are deposited in the hopper +9. The potatoes are then engaged by the conveyer in the trunk 51 and ate carried up and deposited upon the upper run'of a belt .78 which is actuated by the shaftil and which moves longitudinally ot the trunk 60. The dirt and sand which fall upon the upper run of the belt' 78 arecarried rea rwa rdly and deposited upon body 59 while the potatoes which .are depositcd upon the belt 78 are picked'by an operative standing in thewagon body 59 and deposited in a sack provided within the said wagon body.

Ilaviug described the invention what- I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:--

1. A digger and loader comprising a dig ger proper. a conveyer mounted for movement away from the digger, a wagon having its tongue spaced from the tongue of the digger, and a frame located upon the body of the wagon for resiliently supportii'ig one 'end of the conveyer.

E2. digger and loader com rising a digger proper. a wagon arranget to travel at. the ltlt of the digger in predetermined relation. a eonvcyer leading from the digger to the wagon and operated from the digger, and" means for resilientlv supporting the conveyer on the wagon.

digger and loader comprising a diggerproper, a wagon arrai'igcd to travel at the side of said digger in predetermined relation, a conveyor leading from the digger to the wagon and operated from the digger, guides mounted upon the wagon which guides receive between them the delivery end portion of the said eonveyerwhereby the said eonveyee may move lol'igitmlinally within the guides-but is restrained against; lateral movement along the wagon. a belt operated] from the wagon and operatively connected with the conveyor an a slack absorbing device nionntiedupon the wagon and engaging the said belt. i

ger proper.-a. wagon arrange( to travel at the side of the digger in predeterm ned relation thereto, a conveyor leading from the digger to the wagon and operable from the digger. and means for prevent-rag any slack veyer and the wagon.

.1. diggerand loader, comprising a digger proper, a wagon arranged to travel at the side at the digger in predeternnnul relat ion hereto, a conveyor leading from the digger to the wagon and o erable from the digger; and a slack absoz mg device carthe ground beyond the end of'the wagon too l. A dlggerand loader, comprising a digmoveiacnlbetween the free end of the conried by the wagon and engaging the conveyer to regulate the distance between the free end of the conveyer and the wagon.

.6. A digger and loader, comprising a digger proper, a wagon arranged to travel at the side of the digger in predetermined relation thereto, a conveyer leading from the digger and having its free end above the wagon, said conveyer being Opel-ably con- 10 nected to the digger, and means for restrain- J JLIUS FRITZ.

Witnesses WM. Gnnnmvow'r, En. SCHULTZ. 

